Buddhism is
experiencing an extraordinary upswing in popularity in the British armed
forces; Since 2005, the number of servicemen practicing the religion has risen
from 200 to 3,800.
Around 2,800
are Gurkhas, whose home nation Nepal
has pockets of Buddhism.
But the other
1,000 are British, with many converting since they joined the military.
According to
spiritual leaders, the reason behind the phenomenon is that Buddhism allows
service personnel to escape the stresses and strains of military life.
Sunil Kariyakarawana,
the Buddhist chaplain for the armed forces, said: ‘Buddhism has a different
perspective about things.
'The military
is a very stressful place. People go to war, that is one factor, and have to
fight.
'Personnel see
a lot of suffering in theatre. People are finding that Buddhism can help with
these mental agonies.
'It is laid
back and they can practise their own way.'
Dr Sunil said
Buddha, who lived 2,500 years ago, never ruled out force: 'Sometimes you have
to choose war as the least bad option.'
Lieutenant
Colonel Peter Straddings, who heads up cultural diversity for the Army, said
the society was 'hugely important'.
He said:
'British society today is hugely different from the Army I joined 25 years ago.
Approximately 25 per cent of young people are no longer white Anglo-Saxon
Protestants.
'They are the
future. They are the people who represented the country at the Olympics, at
football and they are the people we need for the Army, Navy and Royal Air Force
of the future.'
In 2005,
Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim and Sikh chaplains were appointed by the armed forces
for the first time.
The
appointments reflect the increase in ethnic minority recruitment to the Army,
Navy and RAF in recent years.
In a message to
the society’s conference, the Dalai Lama said: 'I believe that what makes a
good soldier, sailor or airman, just as what makes a good monk, is inner
strength.
'Inner strength
depends on having a firm positive motivation.
'The difference
lies in whether ultimately you want to ensure others’ well being or whether you
wantonly wish to do them harm.'
